brave_kreyu | OOM All Skate Skellig Dream Magic Weirdness -Part 10

That offer takes Skellig by surprise - that is certainly not the direction he expected their conversation to travel in - but his outward reaction is relatively restrained.

(Inwardly, his heart rate jumps a bit, and his adrenaline surges faintly. His body... simply doesn't know what to do with such a proposal.)

"I...I am quite flattered," he stutters softly. "My wife and I..." My wife is not interested in sharing. He trails off briefly for a moment, studying the wine in his glass.

(Is his heart rate doing this as an effect from the wine? And the earlier ouzo? Why does his skin feel flushed? His metabolism usually doesn't react this way... would Kreyu want another partner? Would he want another partner?)

"We have been traveling for some time, I am...unsure of...her desires."

Kreyu picks up on Skellig's jumping heart rate, his adrenaline. She has finished questioning the owner and walks quite quickly toward her husband.

"I understand," Ajax replies. "I would not press either of you, but I would have kicked myself later if I had not made the offer."

Kreyu assesses Ajax as not an ACTIVE threat and slides onto the couch next to Skellig without an invitation of any kind. She wraps her arm around his shoulders, leans in. "Are you alright, love?" she asks, voice soft.

There is a definite sense of 'MINE' in the way her arm is wrapped around his shoulders, the way she's leaning into him.

"Quite, darling," he replies, voice equally as soft. "You should try this wine, the vintage is excellent..."

"No need to offer her yours, sir," Thia 'interrupts' smoothly, approaching with tray in hand to offer a fresh glass to Kreyu - and refills to both Ajax and Skellig. "The House keeps a healthy stock of it on hand for our guests."

And just as quickly as she arrived, once the wine has been passed to each of them, she (and her assets) move on elsewhere. Once she has gone, Skellig lightly clears his throat before he speaks to Ajax.

"This is my wife, Kreyu. Kreyu, this is Ajax... he and I were...discussing birds and flight, among other things." He glances over the embroidery on Ajax's chiton once more. "And you are wise to offer us your company," he adds. "For it is better to take the risk than regret not."

Edited 2024-09-15 04:47 (UTC)

Kreyu offers her thanks to Thia, tries the wine. It IS quite good.

She unconsciously pulls Skellig just a little bit closer when the offering of company is mentioned. "I am not surprised that you would desire the company of a kindred spirit so lovely as my husband," she tells Ajax.

Ajax chuckles. "You have excellent taste, Lady Kreyu." His expression turns more serious, wistful. "It has been many years since I have felt such connection with another soul as I have with your husband. A prince meets many, but true connection is a far rarer and more precious thing than gold."

Skellig's outward reaction to that admission is a warm, soft smile play the part, you must keep the appearance up that is gentle and pleased. "Absolutely," he agrees, as he reaches up to place a hand atop Kreyu's where she has placed it on her shoulder. "Of all the precious gems, gold and silver...none comes close to matching her as far as what I value most."

Through their shared touch, she will be able to sense that he is unsettled (but not in a negative way, just oddly flustered, like a bird who has gotten caught in a sudden gust of wind and now his feathers are all askew and in DESPERATE need of preening) but he is also actively pulling just the slightest bit of her Karma from her - something that he doesn't do often.

(It is weaving through and wrapping around his Light, their energies aligning.)

Yours.

Edited 2024-09-15 12:36 (UTC)

Something in her settles at the feel of their energies aligning. Hers. The motion of her fingers on his shoulder should hopefully be soothing. She doesn't dare preen his actual feathers in public.

"You are a man to be envied, Sokratis," the prince toasts them both. "If I marry at all, it will likely not be with such affection as you have with your wife."

Kreyu goes through her mental list of who's who. "You are the youngest of eight living sons, if I recall correctly?"

Ajax chuckles. "I am indeed, Lady Kreyu. And the one my honorable father has made it clear he finds a disappointment in every sense of the word." Ajax's tone is light, joking, but there are echoes there of old pain.

Preening his actual feathers in public - even with them hidden by the enchantments of his amulet - would be too much for him to handle right now, and he is grateful she is aware of that. Her fingers stroking his shoulder are enough.

"Eight," Skellig says softly, tilting his head slightly - he appears as if he is just listening to another hint of conversation from another alcove, but what he is actually hearing (and absorbing) are the echoes that filter beneath Ajax's words, the sadness and frustration, the feelings of being seen as a disappointment, the yearning for approval and love from a youngest son who needs his father.

He lightly squeezes Kreyu's hand, intertwining their fingers - to steady himself more than anything. "That is many lives to compare to your own, but there is no need for it. Each of us are individuals and will walk our own path."

Ajax's smile turns wry. "My honorable father was always content to be the one doing the comparing," he quips. (Not that he didn't compare himself to his brothers, many times.) "My nature, my choices, all disobedience a half step from treachery in his eyes."

"To cage a bird is no kindness, however good your father's intentions may have been," Kreyu says, voice gentle.

Ajax leans toward them, lowers his voice to a whisper. It COULD look like the beginnings of negotiating a sexual liaison later, to an outside observer. He meets Skellig and Kreyu's eyes, gratitude in his gaze for all his smile is still all charm. "Your words are kind, but you should be careful not to speak them at court."

A shadow passes over his expression for an instant. "No, I would advise you not to go to court at all now, however far you might have traveled to reach it. You are either too late or too early for it to be safe there."

Kreyu will likely understand any undertones being spoken in regards to 'court' much better than he could hope to, so he does not comment on it outright. He also knows there are others in this room than just the three of them, and while he does not sense any threats outright...

(The prince has also mentioned that this place is his 'home' when he is not at home; logically he would not choose to stay here if he did not feel at least some level of trust and safety as far as his surroundings and the other patrons.)

"We will take your words and advice to heed," he replies back, voice equally as soft. "Our schedule and our plans for travel are...flexible."

Ajax leans back as Thia is making the rounds again with drinks.

"That is a relief to hear," Ajax replies, genuine, as Thia refills their glasses. "I would not wish you to run afoul of local storms."

"You are expecting fierce winds?" Kreyu asks. Neither of them are talking about literal weather.

"Very fierce, though this House has withstood such storms before. It has its protections." He sips his wine as Thia is waiting on someone else across the room. He chuckles. "Another reason I have made it my home these days, besides the lovely company."

Kreyu nods. "You expect the storm to last a while, will the city be in danger?"

Ajax thinks for a moment. "No, I don't think the city will come to major harm. Around the palace, perhaps, but no great fires, no tearing down of the city walls, famine, or pestilence."

Skellig rapidly is realizing that he has very little clue of what is actually being discussed in the space between the words that are being used in the conservation between Ajax and Kreyu. Kreyu is interested and intrigued, and he has seen her act like this before, so he is relatively unconcerned... he is happy to just nod when it seems appropriate, but otherwise he will play the part of 'husband' and allow his wife to discuss affairs.

It is natural for their bodies to shift while sitting on the couch; at some point he stretches as he drinks his wine and allows his arm to settle around her shoulders, as she leans in closer in her conversation with Ajax, her hands settling on her glass.

He is listening to this conversation closely, tasting the echoes of certain words to get a sense of the energy of it.

Edited 2024-09-15 14:33 (UTC)

The echoes around winds and storms suggest some kind of political unrest. A succession crisis, perhaps? Ajax did say they are either too late or too early for it to be 'safe' and with eight sons who could inherit the throne...

There is a moment of raw WANT cut with loneliness from Ajax when Skellig wraps his arm around Kreyu's shoulders. Their partnership, their friendship, the intimacy in that easy exchange of touch and position...Ajax is startled by the strength of the desire for what they have between them that surges in him. Startled enough that he has to cover it with an unplanned sip of wine, cover up such weakness in himself. A cover up that would work a lot better against two people who couldn't LITERALLY sense emotions, but he has no way of knowing that.

"I expect matters to sort themselves out in a few moons," he continues after he's settled himself a little. "Though I can't say which wind will be the prevailing one once the storms are over."

"And what of you, Prince Ajax? Will you still be brightening this House when the storms are over?" She is concerned for Ajax's well being. What she's seen of him, sensed from him, is stirring her compassion for him.

"Your concern is touching, Lady Kreyu, truly." Ajax is being entirely sincere, is truly touched. "Only the Fates can speak with certainty of the future, but my hope is that I am not so tall that the winds are in a hurry to knock me over."

Even Skellig is surprised by the strength of the wave of raw want and desire that radiates off of Ajax, enough that he is also forced to sip from his wine glass to cover the reaction that threatens to spread across his features.

"There are advantages to going unseen," he interjects.

He transfers his wine glass to the hand that is currently around Kreyu's shoulder, then with the hand that is now free, he reaches over and touches Ajax on the forearm. Kreyu will be able to easily sense the transfer of Light from his 'reserves' - similar to the bump he gave to Kirke and Xenophon earlier, this isn't a HUGE boost, but it is stronger.

"And there is no shame to be had in ducking, either, to avoid appearing as tall as you stand," he adds. "I feel as if the Fates would not view it as cowardice, but instead as strength, knowledge in knowing when to lower your head."

"Indeed there are," Ajax agrees. His mood brightens at Skellig's touch, shaking off some of the negativity. "I am much practiced at hiding here in plain sight from storms of all kinds, ducking all seven winds when need be."

"Even so," Kreyu muses. She grins as someone in particular crosses her mind. "If I may be so bold, a friend of my eldest brother quite enjoys storms of all kinds. My darling husband has not met him yet, his name is Koschei."

She smiles at Skellig, and he can feel her certainty, her relief, she has a Plan. Ajax looks intrigued by the mention of Koschei. "Named after the hero Koschei, the rescuer of princesses and slayer of monsters?"

"That could be," Kreyu replies. "He certainly has the martial skill to match the name." Given that Koschei is a friend of her oldest brother he is most likely a dragon and therefore old enough that he IS that Koschei. "And he has a fine eye for art, especially sculpture. His work is quite lovely."

Ajax's smile is broad, eager. "Several varieties of fine marble are quarried near here, I should like to see what his hands would make of them."

"I would too, if I am being honest," Kreyu admits.

"As would I," Skellig says honestly.

He can sense within her energy and her smile that she has formulated a Plan, and has a relatively good idea of how to put it into action; her certainty and relief are helping to settle his own nerves.

(Though once they find themselves in a private room, he is definitely going to need to decompress.)

"Do you do any art of your own, Ajax? Or do you tend to simply...appreciate it?"

"We will be traveling roughly where he was last spotted, he's a bit of a wanderer. Should we find him, I will gladly send him your way."

"Splendid," Ajax replies, cheerful.

Kreyu will be glad to help him decompress!

Ajax waves a hand. "I dabble a bit," he admits. "Sketches of what I find intriguing, for the most part." He chuckles in a self deprecating sort of way. "A great many of them of birds, as you might imagine."

If this were another time, another universe, another version of himself and his relationship with Kreyu different...Skellig might offer himself up as a model for a sketch session. (This version of himself is so not confident yet that he would be 'worthy' of it, even with how much he's grown.)

"I had a suspicion, yes, that you might trend towards birds as your subject matter of choice," he says with a smile. "Given your opinions on the piece we discussed earlier."

Those poor birds and their awful wing alignment.

"Perhaps with the help of Koschei, you might grow enough in your skill to be able to decorate this place with some pieces of your own," he offers encouragingly.

"A goal worth working toward," he replies, raising his glass in a toast.

Thia drops by unexpectedly, offers Ajax a glass of a green liquor. Ajax's mood shifts as she offers it. "Thank you, my dear, but not tonight."

Once Thia has left, his gaze turns back to them. "I've made arrangements for certain advance warnings. It would appear my oldest brother is on the premises. They'll stall him for a while, but not forever."

He smiles softly. "I have most enjoyed your company, but it would be prudent for you and Kreyu to retire upstairs for the night before he sees you."

Skellig subconsciously makes note of the newest heartbeat that has arrived within the area that he is 'monitoring', files it away for reference.

"Of course." His smile in return is genuine but also shows that he understands what it is that Ajax isn't saying out loud. "Thank you for your hospitality this evening."

He moves to rise, offering his arm again to clasp in gratitude.

Ajax rises with them, offers his forearm to clasp to Skellig again. "I look forward to speaking with both of you again."

"Likewise," Kreyu agrees. Ajax isn't FRIGHTENED, as they leave him, more a man preparing to face a great deal of unpleasantness.

Kreyu leads Skellig up to their room, opens the door. The suite is lavish, if not as lovely as 'their' room at the House of the Blue Lotuses. The artwork on the walls is also far more sexual in nature.

She locks the door behind them, takes Skellig into her arms. "You did so very well, my heart."

Once the door is locked, he allows himself to drop some of the facade he has been hiding behind (it is getting easier and easier to play the part, but this instance of it has been particularly wearing on him) as he wraps his arms around her.

"I am not... not entirely sure what was happening down there," he mutters softly. "It was as if my heart and mind were reacting in ways that I have never known before."

He is pressing against her a bit, working to ground himself, refocus his center to here and now with her.

She makes soothing sounds, runs her fingers through his hair. "Was it that he wanted you that unsettled you so? That he is a Prince?"

"You would outrank him, as they reckon things here," she says in an attempt at reassurance. "And not by a little, either."

"His rank as a Prince had no influence," Skellig says. "I did not...I did not recognize his desires and intentions at first, but once I realized that it was not the art that he was discussing his appreciation for..."

His skin flushes beneath her touch.

"I did not know how to respond. I...I have never been desired in such a way, apart from you, and even that is much different. I know I am still adjusting to accept such things, but it almost felt...wrong?"

He leans back to look at her, catch her gaze. "You know I would never stray from you, betray your heart. I just...became unsettled."

She kisses him softly on the forehead. "Oh, love."

She holds him just that little bit closer. "It is not wrong to want to be viewed as desirable. Not wrong to feel things when one knows one is desired."

"I know you would not hurt me in such a way, but I am not surprised you should attract such attention." Her smile is a bit sappy. "You are lovely, Skellig. Kind, a good listener, a good friend."

She chuckles. "Given what he told us and what he did NOT say, I would be more surprised if he wasn't drawn strongly to you."

There is relief in his energy she will be able to sense when she tells him that it is not wrong to want to be viewed as desirable, not wrong to feel things -positive things - when he knows he is wanted.

"I just did not want to anger you," he says. "I was worried...because I would never wish to hurt you. My heart belongs to you and my soul is yours alone."

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